Located in southern Vietnam, the Mekong Delta is an area with many river mouths in the sea with lots of fertile land around it. Many fruits and vegetables are grown here and the largest amounts of rice in Vietnam also come from here. The Mekong Delta is a Must See in your trip through Vietnam, especially the Floating Market is fun to see and experience but that is not the only thing!
Mekong Delta Tour Details
To properly explore the Mekong Delta, it is easier to book a guided tour. The area is large and that is why it is comfortable to see many things in a short a time all organized and planned in advance for you! So prior to my trip to Vietnam, I had found a guided tour of Vietnam Adventure Tour from Ho Chi Minh City of two days and an overnight stay in Can Tho. The cost for the tour was 99 USD, this is based on 2 or more persons. I had booked a room for one person so had to pay extra, so it was a total of 120 USD. The tour included all transportation (including van, boats, tuk tuk and bicycle), lunch and breakfast twice, water, accommodation in fine hotel and English-speaking guide of course!
The adventure began in Ho Chi Minh City where I had to go from my M Hotel in District 3 to the Vietnam Adventure Tour office in District 1 by Grab taxi. In fact, pick up of most tours in Ho Chi Minh City is only from District 1. Suitcases with me because I would not go back to Ho Chi Minh City but stay in Can Tho the largest city in this region. I was lucky, with this Mekong Delta Tour we were with a small group; only three tourists, plus the guide and driver!
Visit Vinh Trang Pagoda
Around 7:30 we left Ho Chi Minh City by van, through the green rice fields towards My Tho near Ben Tre. The first stop of the tour is the Vinh Trang Pagoda, one of the most famous temples in the Mekong Delta. Beautiful complex with several temples and Buddhas. After some explanations from the guide, we had time to walk through the complex ourselves. Perfect for shooting some nice pictures! On to the next stop on the itinerary.
If you go by yourself a homestay in the Ben Tre area is a good alternative
Unicorn Island: Bees and Tea
The driver dropped us off at the Tien River in My Tho where we boarded a traditional motorboat. The water was dark brown and quite rough and lots of current, but all went well fortunately. There are a total of four islands, each with its own meaning: strength, success, beauty and long life. The boat docked at Thoi Son Island also called Unicorn Island, which stands for strength. Here a table was waiting for us at a bee farm where we could taste the local honey and drink tea with bee pollen.
Phoenix Island: Palm Trees and Coconuts
Then the boat took us to the next island Con Phung or Phoenix Island (beauty). Here we transferred to a small rowing boat. I thought this was perhaps the most fun and beautiful part of the whole tour! We were given a traditional Vietnamese hat (called Non-La in Vietnamese) here and we paddled through a tunnel of beautiful palm trees. After enjoying the stunning nature and a taken my new profile photo, we stopped at a small village on the island.
Here we were welcomed by a local family, there was a designated table appointed to us where various tropical fruits were served for us to taste. While tasting, there was also a folk music performance by singers and musicians with local musical instruments. Funny to see, but don’t think they were going to win the Voice of Vietnam. At this location you could also hold a snake, I thought that was scary and also sad to see so I stuck to tasting chocolate!
Then we get into a tuk tuk on to the next stop. Now you understand, it’s better to book a tour instead of figuring it out yourself! This stop was a “Tourist Trap” shall I say. It was mega crowded in this coconut candy factory. This Ben Tre province is also known as “The Land of Coconut.” It was nice to see the process, but of course it was mainly about selling souvenirs and of course the coconut candies.
Dragon Island: Lunch and Biking
This candy factory was close to the motorboat, so it picked us up again and took us to the next island; Dragon Island. Here a traditional lunch was waiting for us, with a whole fish and delicious vegetables. Well organized and tasty! Next to the restaurant you could get a free bike and ride around the island. So like a true Dutchy, of course I got on my bike and rode down the only road on the island. Lovely, also stopped at a beautiful temple. If you don’t like to ride the bike you can relax on a hammock. Time to head back to the boat with a coconut in hand enjoying a fun day so far. Now chilling in the van that took us to the heart of the Mekong Delta region, Can Tho. We were all asleep in the van, still tiring of all those impressions and the warm weather.
Note: the order and route may be different on each tour, but the idea and visits of the tours are generally all the same.
Can Tho and Cai Rang Floating Market
In the late afternoon we arrived in Can Tho. I noticed that we crossed many bridges to get there, it’s really all the rivers you cross in the Mekong Delta. The tours include an overnight stay so I was curious about the hotel. But I was so positively surprised! What a cool hip trendy hotel, Wink Hotel Can Tho Ninh Kieu Wharf. Super modern rooms, not too big but very comfortable. The best thing about the hotel though was the rooftop with pool and beautiful view! I could also pick this hotel myself with a 24-hour stay, so if you arrive in the late afternoon, you may also leave in late afternoon, instead of the standard 11:00 or 12:00 check out.
After checking in, it is kind of nice to walk into Can Tho and look around. Enjoy a Hot Pot for dinner or explore the fun atmosphere at this riverfront town.
Do go to bed early because my alarm clock was at 4:30 to visit the “Cai Rang Floating Market”!
The boat to the floating market left at 5:30, so it was nice to see the sunrise from the boat. It was another half hour boat ride (6km) from Can Tho harbor to the beginning of the market. Now for several years this Floating Market has been more of a tourist attraction than a truly local market. The real market is just on land in a covered hall, especially cooler and more hygienic. But we as tourists naturally find this more fun to take a boat up the river to buy pineapples or taste other fruits. Personally, I found it a bit disappointing, especially since I had to get up soooo early!
The market is most vibrant in the early hours of the morning also escaping the heat of the day!
As part of the tour this morning, we also went by a rice noodle factory. Here you could see the process of making rice noodles and also make them yourself. Funny to see!
Good to see the Dutch invention of the Ocean Clean up in the river at Can Tho, is clearly very much needed here!!!
Stay in Can Tho
I had decided to let this Mekong Delta Tour end in Can Tho and did not go back to Ho Chi Minh City on the second day. So I went back to the Wink Hotel and laid by the pool, while the rest of the tour left for Ho Chi Minh City again after breakfast. The tour does another stop at the 10 Vo old house. Here you will explore a historic Vietnamese house and learn about its architectural details, local traditions and customs. You will also be offered another lunch here.
Since I didn’t join them, I had an extra day and night in Can Tho which was also needed to get some sleep from the early morning. My pre-booked Can Tho Ecolodge was perfect for quietly reading a book by the pool and taking a nice power nap, after all, it is still vacation too! The location of the Ecolodge is a little drive out of Can Tho, but then you are in the middle of the farmland area with a lot of green.
Grab taxi was about 120k VND and half an hour, to the airport from Ecolodge was 200K VND and about 45 minutes
The Ecolodge is very stylish and the pool is stunning. The rooms are huge and the bathroom was even larger (~80 USD)! Good pick if you like to chill the afternoon. The accommodation offers all-meal services, so there is no need to get out of the Lodge!
Vietnam Airlines flies daily at 10:40 from Can Tho to Phu Quoc in 80 minutes. For me, this was more convenient than going back to Ho Chi Minh City and flying to Phu Quoc from there. This way you save time and avoid an extra stopover in the big city. You can also take a boat from Can Tho to Phu Quoc, which is longer but also cheaper.
